The Creatures Will Strike At Midnight
by Usabunn
Summary: Jughead finds himself in turmoil after the disappearances of a few of his classmates and the meeting of a strange blonde haired girl who warns him of the fate that befalls Riverdale. With the help of this mysterious girl and other unlikely friends, Jughead will hopefully be able to rescue this ill-fated town from the supernatural creatures that want to end it. Bughead/Varchie AU
1. Two Paths Are Crossed

Riverdale High students Jason Blossom and Ethel Muggs were both reported missing, having never returned to their homes after school.

Jason was last seen on the first of January, on a Monday at around 4pm.

Ethel was last seen exactly a week later.

Witness reports of the last sightings of both students were eerily similar. Both walked home alone, their faces devoid of any expression. Both refused to take any ride to their house, both responding to offers with:

"I know where I'm going. I'm going home."

Police had been on this case for about a month with no leads and no evidence to help them.

Jason and Ethel both just vanished, leaving nothing behind.

* * *

Jughead Jones attempted to collect his fallen textbooks from the school's front steps. Every move to grab the books just caused them to tumble further down the cement steps.

Tiny snickers came from behind his back. He wasn't sure if they were coming from bored jocks, or a bunch of random kids he didn't care to get to know.

Jughead grumbled swear words under his breath, directing them towards both his slippery hands and the obnoxious high schoolers. The only book he had a grip on was his History textbook. The rest fell into a giant puddle at the bottom of the steps, soaking the pages of each one.

The group of laughing kids strolled down the steps, passing Jughead without so much as pausing to lend him a hand. All they offered him was their laughter and teasing.

One guy slapped Jughead's back, almost causing him to fall down the last few steps. "Nice job, Jug-head."

Jughead kept his eyes on his soaked textbooks, not glancing at the stranger's face. "Screw off," he remarked, brushing off the rude statement. He was used to never receiving kindness from others, and frankly, he didn't think he needed it.

He walked down the last flight of steps and bent over to gather up the books. Freezing water dripped from them and drenched his jacket sleeves, sending a chill throughout his arms that made them a chore to hold.

He walked away still feeling that guys' eyes on him, imagining a wide, satisfied grin spreading across the boy's slimy face.

Jughead didn't care. He was used to it.

He strode past more students. All of them walked shoulder to shoulder with their little cliques of friends. Some even had on such similar outfits that it would be an effort to tell them apart.

Jughead always wondered what those little groups of friends talked about. Even if he would never experience what having more than one friend was like, it was interesting to ponder.

"Yo, Jughead!"

Here came the aforementioned one friend, jogging across the parking lot.

"Earth to Jughead!" Archie ran up to him, waving his hands in Jughead's face. "You aren't possessed are you?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Like Jason or Ethel?" Archie clarified, raising a brow at Jughead's question.

"Yes, I know about them," Jughead responded with his tone much more stern.

The whole school knew about them. People loved to make up their own theories about what happened.

One theory stated they were both abducted by some galactic aliens. That was the type of stuff children imagined; it should not have been something coming from adolescents almost out of high school. The second theory involved some masked felon that had started kidnapping teenagers in the daytime. That theory had no weight to it.

The most popular rumor was that Jason and Ethel had run away together. A popular high-school boy and a not-so-popular high-school girl run away together out of fear of what society would think; sounded like some schlocky young adult romance novel to Jughead.

"Just because they both mysteriously disappeared doesn't necessarily mean they were being possessed." Jughead continued.

Archie looked down at Jughead's soaked textbooks. "Well, either way, I gotta keep an eye out for you so you don't vanish without a trace."

"Well, thanks for worrying." Jughead said, meaning it even if his tone came off a bit condescending. "I can handle myself fine though, Archie."

"I mean it! What if you disappear, Jug?" Archie questioned. "Your father would be so devastated."

"Like he would care. He barely even comes home." Jughead began walking again, leaving Archie standing in the cold, alone.

"Well be safe anyway, Jug!" Archie's voice boomed, startling Jughead with how loud it was. A bunch of other students switched their attention from what they were doing to Jughead.

Jughead felt all their eyes on him, making him a bit unnerved. He hastened his steps.

* * *

The woods were silent and eerie as Jughead headed home, his feet shuffling slowly across the hard-packed dirt floor of the woods.

Jughead had thought that going through the woods would be a useful shortcut, but the chill of the afternoon was beginning to get to him. He regretted having worn such a thinly-layered jacket.

Every breath he took condensed in the freezing air, then vanished like a puff of smoke.

He realized the temperature was dropping unnaturally quickly, and shivered, wrapping his jacket more tightly around himself and glancing over his shoulder, a weird, prickly sensation tickling the back of his neck.

He picked up his pace, hastening through the woods with the full intention of getting home as quickly as possible. He glanced up at the sky. It barely contained any clouds; just clear, bright blue with a few wisps of white.

"What the hell," he whispered to himself, staring up at the previously empty sky.

Something was falling, apparently out of thin air, and at an alarming rate. It was too far to identify what it truly was.

Before Jughead could think, his legs moved on their own. He bolted through the forest, dead set on discovering what it was. He bumped wildly into several trees and tripped over dozens of sticks on the ground.

He was getting closer and closer to the falling unknown object, except now that he was nearer, he realized it wasn't an object.

It was a girl.

She fell into the trees, disappearing from Jughead's sight before he could notice anything else about her. He kept running though.

He didn't know what she was plummeting into.

Jughead skidded to a halt, barely stopping himself from plunging into a small lake.

In the middle of the lake was the body of the fallen girl; a long, white veil covering her skin. All he could see was her curly, blonde hair. Her closed eyes made it seem as though she was peacefully sleeping on the surface.

The only things the water touched were her hair and the back of her white dress, which were both soaked. The rest of her body stayed completely dry, Jughead noticed with a start.

Jughead knew full well how to swim; he just wasn't a fan of swimming in ice cold water. He sighed heavily, knowing what he had to do. He'd never forgive himself for leaving the girl alone in the lake. He removed his blue jacket, letting it fall to the ground, took a fortifying breath, and swan-dived into the lake.

It was freezing - even worse than he'd expected it to be. He lifted his head out of the water, now close enough to touch her. Grabbing hold of her, he swam back to the bank before he could come down with hypothermia.

Finally reaching the shore, he placed her body on the ground and covered her with his jacket, hoping it would help warm her up. Jughead's own body was violently shaking from being in the freezing water.

He looked down, eyeing the girl, half-convinced that he was hallucinating. What was she? What could have possibly happened that lead to her falling out of the sky?His head buzzed with questions.

One question he had was how he was getting home, now almost frozen. _And_ he'd have to get this mystery girl home with him. He had nowhere else to take her.

* * *

The sun was setting now, enveloping the world in bitter dark. The mystery girl rested on his couch, still sleeping as peacefully as when he'd found her, and covered with the heaviest blanket he could find in the trailer.

Jughead continuously checked her pulse to see if she was dead, fresh relief flooding through him with every beat of her heart. Slowly he was recovering from the frost, wearing the freshest batch of clothes he could find and frequently stretching his arms. It had been a few hours since he'd carried her away from the lake, and his arms still ached from the strain.

He longed for the girl to wake up. He had so many questions to ask her, and the wait was driving him crazy.

"What are you?" He whispered the question, knowing full well she wouldn't respond.

Moving his eyes down, he noticed something new: a small necklace with a silver chain wrapped around her neck. At the end of the chain lay a silver, oval-shaped jewel. Strange that he'd only noticed the necklace now.

It occurred to him that the necklace might not be comfortable to sleep with. He reached around her neck and unhooked the clasp.

The girl's eyes opened in terror and she let out a chilling scream. She shot up from the couch, still yelling.

Every bit as scared as her, Jughead fell back and crawled away from her.

"Don't touch it!" The girl swung her hands towards the back of her neck and fixed her necklace.

"You're awake!" Jughead's voice cracked as he spoke, shocked by her sudden awakening.

Now a bit calmer, she looked around the tiny room.

"Where am I?" she demanded, analyzing the trailer. "Why'd you touch my necklace, you freak?"

"Why're you calling me a freak when you fell out of the sky earlier today?"

"The sky?" She now stared up at Jughead, her frightened blue eyes scanning him as she processed his words.

"Yes, and now you're in my mobile home," Jughead answered slowly.

Her terrified expression changed into a calm look of understanding. She snapped her fingers as though an important thought had come to her. "Ahh, I almost forgot." She sprung off his couch. "Your town is in unimaginable danger!" she explained. "I came here to help."

"Unimaginable danger? What are you talking about?" Jughead, still fearful of the stranger in his home, decided to question her now that she was fully awake. "Who are you exactly?" he asked her again.

"You seem a bit on-edge. Maybe I should introduce myself." The girl had a glimmering smile on her face. "For now, I'll just give you my name. I'm Betty."

"Betty? That's a pretty mundane name for someone who isn't exactly boring." Jughead lifted himself off of the floor and brushed the dust from his pants. "My name's Jughead..." he added, scratching the back of his neck. He stared at her, trying to comprehend this absurd situation.

"Why aren't you telling me more about yourself?" Jughead stepped back, keeping his distance from Betty. He still knew absolutely nothing about her and only had her outlandish story to hold onto.

"Okay, fine. I was planning on telling you this later but I need you to trust me." Betty rubbed the bridge of her nose, knowing how difficult it'd be to explain what she was going to say. "I'm part of a group called the Mentors. We come to the aid of anyone who needs help."

Jughead turned away from Betty, tilting his head and frowning. "What the hell does any of that mean?" he muttered.

"I came from the sky be-because that's how we exit our world." Betty hesitated at Jughead's frustration but continued, joking, "It isn't that graceful -" falling silent when Jughead began to pace.

"Okay, Betty. Then tell me this:" Jughead turned to stare at Betty, his expression showing extreme puzzlement. This girl was speaking bizarre nonsense to him and he couldn't figure anything out.

"How exactly was this plan of yours supposed to go? You fall into a lake and wake up once Riverdale's already in ruins?"

"Okay. For your information, passing out was a mistake on my part."

"So, my whole town would've been doomed if I hadn't found you?"

They both stood in silence for a moment, Betty looking around at the trailer's furnishings like she still didn't know where she was.

"I don't think you understand how dire this situation is," she replied, ignoring Jughead's question.

"You didn't answer my-"

Betty moved closer to him until their faces were almost touching, her eyes staring intensely into Jughead's. "You are going to _die_ if we don't act now! Creatures have invaded your town - unnatural creatures that need to be purged immediately or else you and your town will be destroyed."

"What kinds of creatures? Like ghouls and vampires?" Jughead gave a wry smile, which only served to disgust Betty.

"It's obvious you're not taking this seriously." Betty crossed her arms in frustration. "Look, this is going to be difficult. If it's going to work, I'm going to have to protect you, and you have to help protect me."

"It's that dangerous?"

"Death is a possibility in this mission." she confirmed. "So you'd better be prepared to take that risk." Even she couldn't deny that the chances of surviving this could be slim.

Jughead plopped onto his couch and leaned onto his knees with his face in his palms.

"The only reason I kind of believe your story is because you actually fell out of the sky and somehow survived," he groaned. "May I ask if any of this has to do with the recent disappearances?" Jughead glanced up at Betty.

"Disappearances?" Betty appeared confused by the off-topic statement.

"Some kids at my school went missing. They were going home but never returned," Jughead explained. "Police are having a hard time finding them."

"Well if this is connected to those creatures, then it seems like I came too late," Betty muttered, regretful of her tardiness.

Jughead stood up again. "Too late? What do you mean by that?"

Betty let out a brief meek yawn. "Can I rest again?"

"What? You've been sleeping all day!" Jughead barked back, not realizing how harsh his statement sounded.

"All I can tell you right now is that you'd better be careful." Betty could only muster up a warning before she collapsed onto the couch again, instantly falling into her deep peaceful sleep again.

This whole situation felt like a bizarre, lucid dream. Jughead knew somehow that this dream would become worse in the future.


	2. Things Can Always Get Worse

"Where are you going?" Betty questioned as she watched Jughead pack his backpack with paper.

Jughead looked up at Betty for a moment and then back at his bag. "School."

"The place where you learn?"

"Yeah." Jughead zipped up his backpack. "You know about Earth culture?"

"It was only a question!" Betty scoffed and walked right back to the couch.

Jughead swung his bag over his shoulder. "Well, I'll be off, then."

Opening the door, a whiff of frosty air entered the trailer. Surprisingly, it wasn't as cold as yesterday.

"Can I come with you?"

Jughead jumped when he noticed Betty was right next him.

"No. I doubt you've ever gone to school before." Jughead's impatience started to grow.

"I just don't wanna be alone." Betty pleaded, looking down at her bare feet. "And besides, what if something happens to you too?"

"I'll be fine," Jughead assured Betty so she'd leave him be. "Just go out and make some friends or something. I left you a note on the kitchen counter with the directions to my school if you need me."

Betty shook her head in agreement and Jughead stepped out the door.

* * *

The day was the same as always. Nothing new. Jughead barely saw Archie in school - Archie was too preoccupied with his other friends. By the time the final bell rang, he was starting to feel lonely. He didn't want to put in the effort to find Archie, so he decided to head straight home.

He reached into his pocket for his phone and swore when he came up empty.

Sometimes he hung out in the janitor's closet when he was bored; it was a place he would read, because it was quiet enough for him to concentrate - and nobody bothered him. Maybe he'd dropped his phone there.

Great. Now he'd have to walk back into the school, and probably bump into kids he'd rather avoid.

* * *

The lateness of the hour meant that the closet was locked, but a convincing story and an apologetic smile procured the janitor's keys without too much hassle. He wrestled with the ancient lock and pushed the door open.

The room was completely without light and he had to fumble in the dark for the light switch. The closet emitted a ghastly smell that Jughead hadn't noticed when he entered the closet at the beginning of the day.

His hand finally touched the switch and he flicked the lights on, brightening the tight space in an instant. He jumped, startled to see a student already in the closet, leaning against the wall.

Then he looked closer. The boy's eyes were slightly open but his mouth was completely shut.

Jughead crept towards him.

With mounting horror, Jughead took in the sight before him. The boy was almost devoid of any colour - his skin looked grey in the flickering fluorescent light. Dry spots of crimson blood messily sprinkled the bottom of his chin.

Feeling a bizarre sense of deja-vu, Jughead moved the boy's collar out of the way, searching for the pulse of a stranger for the second time in as many days. A huge bite mark marred his pale skin, tooth marks prominent even under vast quantities of already-dried blood.

Jughead steeled himself and pressed his fingers to the boy's neck, knowing where his pulse should be, but not finding it.

He was dead.

"Help!" Jughead yelled, running out of the room where corpse of a former student lay. "Somebody please!"

* * *

One of the school's teachers was summoned from a pile of badly-written essays by the sound of Jughead's frantic screams, and took in the horrific scene in the janitor's closet, and immediately called for the police.

After that, things happened almost too quickly to process: the boy's body was swiftly taken away; several people's whereabouts where questioned; Jughead provided every detail over and over, answering truthfully and with increasing exasperation.

God, he just wanted to go home.

"Jughead!" A familiar voice called his name and he turned to see Betty running in his direction with a bright smile on her face, apparently oblivious to the tense atmosphere surrounding the students, staff and investigators.

She no longer wore her all-white robes but instead regular clothes - meaning his favorite gray turtleneck sweater and his least-favorite high water blue jeans.

He had to admit, they did suit her better than him.

She reached him quickly but she had to catch her breath before blurting out, "Where've you been? I've been waiting for you at the trailer for hours."

"Well, Betty Boop, I just discovered something wonderful." He wore his sarcasm like a defensive shield. He didn't need anything else to piss him off today.

"What was it?" she questioned.

Jughead pointed directly at the school. "I forgot my phone and went back inside for it. When I went in the janitor's closet to get it, I was greeted by the corpse of one of my peers." Jughead's scowl deepened. "And then the police questioned me for an hour, out here in the cold," he spat. "Now when the word spreads around school that I found a dead body, people are gonna torment me, thinking I killed some kid."

"That doesn't sound wonderful." Betty sighed. Her cheery expression dropping to mirror Jughead's own unhappy face.

"Well yeah." Jughead let out an exhausted sigh.

Betty gave him a sympathetic grin. "Well, it's not really the time, but my day was wonderful. I met a bunch of nice people on the street." She gained enthusiasm as she spoke, excitedly announcing, "I even met this one beautiful girl right by this fancy hotel."

"Oh really? Did you get her name?"

"Oh, I got a bunch of people's names today so it's a bit hard to remember." Betty placed her finger on her chin and looked away, trying to remember the girl's name. "I think it was Veronica. I have to see her again to check."

"Veronica?" Jughead quirked his eyebrow up.

"Yeah, she mentioned she was actually planning to go to your school soon. She just moved to Riverdale."

A lot new students were coming into his school. Too many to count and significantly more than last year.

"Yeah, well, let's get out of here before anyone else sees me." Jughead pushed Betty along with him and they walked off together.

As they walked through the forest, Jughead felt as if a set of eyes were following every footstep they took and quickened his pace with Betty by his side.


End file.
